Masha Arts from Boxtel was painfully surprised when she visited the grave of her son Luuk, who died in 2003, this Wednesday. Many of the souvenirs she and her family had left there over the years had been taken away. “We immediately searched everything, but I don’t expect to see them again.”
Luuk Arts was less than a year old when he passed away. Since then he has been buried in the Munsel cemetery on the Kastanjelaan. Masha: “We have always been used to putting souvenirs from zoos, countries or theme parks with him.” To keep the feeling that Luuk will stay with them forever. “Over the years, things have disappeared or been replaced because they were dirty or broken. That was always our choice. Now someone else has done that for us, I discovered. Someone thought it necessary to remove almost all the stuff. get it,” says the Boxtelse.
“My biggest fear: more grave robbery.”
Immediately she is with her husband and mother-in-law, both of whom also reacted shocked. started a search. Everywhere the mementos could be: in the wheelie bins, in the bushes or perhaps even in pieces scattered around the cemetery. Unfortunately, nothing was found. But that doesn’t mean the Arts family will stop posting souvenirs.
“We just got back from vacation and then also bought something for the grave. But we will wait a while. My biggest fear is that this is the start of more grave robbery. And no one is waiting for that.” Doctor calls on people to put back souvenirs that have been taken from her child’s grave. She also sympathizes with other relatives who have found out that a bronze statue has been stolen from the grave of their loved one.
“You keep your hands off other people’s things.”
“Stealing from a grave, disgusting and unacceptable”, Mayor Ronald van Meygaarden of the municipality of Boxtel responds to the grave desecration. “You keep your hands off other people’s things, but certainly in a place like this with things that mainly have emotional value. This really hits the next of kin. Sad, very sad.”
Van Meygaarden advises victims to report: “Only then can the police and judiciary track down and punish the perpetrator.” He instructs the perpetrators to return the items: “This is about more than material value.” The Arts family has since contacted the police and filed a report. She has no idea who is behind it. Yes, young people sometimes walk through the cemetery in the evening, she says, but she cannot prove that there has been youthful vandalism.